Tribute for the Heroes of Nine Eleven
by Duel Mistress K
Summary: (Armada, AU) A lone Autobot watches the attack on the WTC as they happen, and comes to a revelation about himself, as well as the human race. ((it sucks, one shot, OOC maybe. R&R))


DMK: Hey peoples! 'Tis me! I am risking my school computer privileges by writing this little doohicky here on the computer… Well, this is basically a recap of those events, through the eyes of a certain Transformer, and his emotions… and he is QUITE a softie at times… well, not in the show, anyway, but that's not the point! Mwaha! Heeeeere we go!

*****

I stand alone. Watching. Protecting.

All is silent, nothing wrong. True to my character, I doze off now and then.

Until it happened.

An alarm blares in my audio. Sit up with a start and silence it before the other Autobots can pick up on the noise. I turned on the largest monitor, and I see the destruction. There was a gaping hole in the side of a massive, tall tower, spewing smoke and flames profusely.

I scowl at this. _This was the Decepticons' work_! I snarl to myself. I watched intently, hoping to see one of those accursed, evil, Transformers causing this chaos.

But there wasn't a trace of them. Only humans. When I realized it, I gasped in shock. _How could someone DO this?!_

Hardly anything caught me off guard, surprised me, but this did. And, to my horror, I see a large aircraft fly straight into the second one! It was a 'commercial' vehicle… that meant that there were humans on it!

I am a mercenary. Pain and death is part of my job. I have learned to shun the guilt that rises within me when I kill. Its my job, but this? Humans mindlessly killing others of their own kind like they're nothing? It angers me to no end.

Then, I notice scores of uniform-clad humans rush into the tower. _Don't!_ I cry in my mind. _Those buildings will collapse_! But they charge in anyway, against all reason and logic. They are courageous, and won't be denied. That puts me a bit at ease.

For the moment.

Another alarm sounds, and I press a switch. Another plane has crashed, this time, in a different area of this nation the humans call 'The United States'. The building was oddly shaped, like a pentagon, and one side of it had been slagged.

Now, my anger soars to almost unfathomable heights. I couldn't grasp the notion of humans killing in such ways…

I can hardly stand the destruction that I'm witnessing. And again, my attention is drawn to the two towers, that I remembered had been named the 'World Trade Center'. Slowly, I notice the second tower sway. _No! Its falling!_

And I felt so helpless.

_This… this is too much!_ There were still thousands of humans trapped within as it buckled. My spark sinks at the rate of the tower's descent.

As hard and as cold as I may seem, mindless massacres still faze me. It hits me where weapons cant. This planet- the Earth- seemed just too beautiful; the thought of such evil lurking on it was shocking.

Then, minutes later, the one that had been the first to be attacked, fell as well. It was a sickening rain of steel, cinderblock, ashes, and even humans… _So many… so many lives… so many families… so many parents and children and lovers and friends… gone…_

A silvery tear of Energon escapes my hardened face… why am I crying? They are only humans, what does it matter to me?

The tower seems to fall in slow motion. Humans trapped within fall to their deaths as well. The sight was sickening, even to a mercenary such as myself. Feeling the sensation of my insides preparing to heave, I looked away quickly and closed my optics. I just hated seeing all of those innocent lives… disappear…

When I found the will to again look, I saw that now both of the World Trade Center buildings have fallen. The dust and smoke rushes through the surrounding streets, chasing survivors and bystanders and rescuers away.

Finally, furious at this, I turn from the monitors, to notice that Optimus was also watching this as well. His optics seem squinted a tad, as if he was deep in furrowed thought, and also ready to shed tears. 

"This proves that humans and Transformers are truly alike…" he trailed off, not breaking his gaze on the monitor. "Like us, there must always be conflict, always be war… Though the killing of innocents pains me so…"

Unable to say a word of consolation to my long-time friend, I take a step forward. It is understood between the two of us that this experience, despite the fact that those killed were humans, it hurts.

"Optimus, I'm going to that city. There must be something I can do to help them…"

Prime, the sagacious, understanding being that he is, nodded. "Go. Do what your spark tells you."

Without another word exchanged, I left. Alone, I walked into the warp gate, and inputted the coordinates on the data pad: Ground Zero. When I arrive, in my vehicle mode, mind you, there are already scores of humans digging together in an attempt to save anyone trapped underneath.

Silently, slowly, I roll forward, into eyesight, and stop. It took only moments before a firefighter, charred, injured, and weary, caught sight of me, and came my way. As I sense him take control of my body, I am put at ease. 'Maybe I CAN make a difference here,' I think to myself as I move a ton or so of rubble.

It pains me when I notice there are hardly any living bodies that are pulled from this former building. Many of them were just innocent men and women that had done nothing… so why? This confused me, and my mind drifted away from my task.

You see, even though I am thought to be cold-blooded, quite the contrary. I watched thousands of people die today, either as rescuers or the ones being rescued. They died with honor and dignity, selflessly sacrificing themselves in order to save people they didn't even know… The humans have now fully earned my respect.

Offering my body to the humans is the least I could do also. As much as I want to transform and assist them, I cant. They cant see my true body, not now, not yet. But, today, I have come to a revelation: I WILL die with the same honor those rescuers did, giving my life bravely for what I believe in.

Like the heroes of September 11th.

*******

DMK: Uhh… I know… Scavey was OOC, so what? I did this in computer lab, without thinking about anything. Don't flame it, make of it what you will. By the way, Chapter three if Chibi for a Week is being retyped now, so get ready. Alright, see ya!


End file.
